


Sandbox Street

by itsfrantastic



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-29
Updated: 2017-01-28
Packaged: 2018-09-20 14:10:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9494972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsfrantastic/pseuds/itsfrantastic
Summary: Kyungsoo's voice was almost melodic in tone as if every-word was perfectly stressed and accented to provide Kai with comfort on the cloud ride to heaven but he was never there when he needed him. When he was dieing for the salvation that the other man provided in words of comfort and songs of praise leaving Kai to seek it out in the form of the escape from reality provided by Sandbox Street.





	1. Chapter 1

Had he, the bearer of broken dreams aspired to be anything more than a complete fuck up in the eyes of his people then perhaps he would have assumed a position in society that benefited any party. Instead of a torrential slide into the dismal abyss that was his depression. His own subconscious betraying him to thoughts and feelings he had never wanted to think or feel, let alone see on a constant loop for five hours. Society has made a mockery of him. Flesh exposed, heart torn apart, sadness crouched beneath his chocolate gaze. She never allowed him to feel the patience and love of her arms, caring kindly for the boy. Rearing him so. She had done so many things instead. 

Tossing him out like Sunday's paper atop the garbage waiting for the kindly old man to come and dispose of it. Like his hopes and his dreams; the ones the little boy with an affinity for dance would dream about. A special kiss on the corner of his lips just waiting for his dream lover to whisk him away, to a happy place where disasters never happened. People never died. Mothers never got angry. At times despite attempts made so desperately by the boy, he would revisit this childish time with passionate fervor unbridled before him. 

If Jongin had tried to be anything but the boy -- no, man he was so easily becoming then he would have done great things. Then, perhaps, he would have benefited from her. Society. The evil mistress with claws as long and as large as the years he spent in pain. She would silently laugh as he picked himself up off the pavement, asphalt embedded in his hands , blood dripping from the knees which were so displayed before his audience due to the jeans with strategic holes in them. 

He was used to it.

The boy was young but not too young as to cause suspicion even if the children on the streets at night failed to do so. Once in a while a humble rookie would stumble upon her paths. Shock written on his features and in his holy heart and find some way to make himself feel better at night. He would fail in doing so, naturally, and with fear in his heart agree to protect the cops on the take. To turn a blind eye to the horrors and injustice on Sandbox Street. Profiting off the children that cried out but preying desperately for someone to do something on his knees at an altar. 

Jongin tried his best to not concern himself with the keeping's of the men in blue. He always found it too risky to service the service men. Something so ironic he'd laugh and then occasionally break down and cry at the corruption in the city, her beautiful yet seedy underbelly never too far away. 

Many boys like him (the ones with hearts that could be good, could stand for something if only) struggle to understand how the world balanced on such a scale without tipping over the edge completely. How do the poor cry hungry if the rich cry fed? How do the police swear to protect and serve the people if all they do is protect the badge of the next and serve their own pleasures? Without a single regard for human life? For the child underneath them growing old with each passing glance and touch? 

Well, such is such and he'd whisper to himself with the coke on the table and the beer in a cold glass and think: What could you do? He'd sigh and get up and attempt to sober himself as he stumbled out into the cold and leave that particular thought for more scholarly men to interpret (The ones that could afford to laugh without faking it and the ones who only cried for superficial reasons, not because a rib was broken or they had lost their only friend to the life) and turn his thoughts to far more pressing matters. 

Like the gun against his side. 

Or the track-marks on Baekhyun (a pretty little thing who was new, all so new and didn't even realize it).

Or the hit from his pimp as he did his daily shakedown for the meager earnings the boy had collected doing what he did best. 

Working the streets. 

Turning tricks. 

Dealing. 

Whatever he could to survive. 

Some people-- why, some people wanted it be legal. Jongin couldn't fathom why. Drugs, okay. Less cartel violence if the cocaine they're sneaking through the country in some twink's ass wouldn't land them in prison for a ridiculous amount of time. Less head's being cut off by the Zeta's in Mexico, or heaven's deliverance that MS13 would provide. 

(Jongin wasn't really affiliated, had never really been affiliated to the wannabe's that thought they ran the underbelly. The dark night that consumed the streets when the good people turned the lights out. Overall, it was fairly safe if you stayed in all the right places. Stuck to the large cities and shopping district and pretty little tourist attractions that the blonde-haired foreigner would drag her even prettier friend to). 

Prostitution? Prostitution led to other things. Nasty things. What's the price of a human? Surely it must depend on their assets? The color of their teeth? How much could they take? 

Jongin didn't know what to believe. If people were as nice and inviting as the childish tales he once heard said they were-- why did little boys and girls cry in the dead of night? Shivering, afraid, waiting for someone to come and take them away from the sandbox. 

As the snow dropped down in heavy little blotches, staining the already dirty mush an even brigher shade of grey-white, Jongin or ''Kai'' as he so desperately referred to be called, (as Jongin reminded him too much of his screaming mother. Her anger pulsating out of her small yet powerful body in waves that seemed to completely stun and silence her quivering child) approached a small cafe in the middle of the city. 

Kai sighed and opened up the door, stepping inside he did a complete once over. A nasty habit he picked up the first time he got jumped. Many other nervous ticks had developed and took hold, ways to cope with the impending trauma. The small bakery sat mostly empty with a young girl studiously doing homework in the corner, a half eaten pumpkin donut sitting on a napkin in front of her and the manager who stood behind the counter. Headphones in and textbook atop the marble counter-top in an unseemly manner, pages worn and stained from heavy usage. 

It was warm and soothing light jazz played over the speaker-system, loud enough to hear but soft enough to put to the back of once's mind as they occupied their time with various other matters. Kai had never been here before but he knew he would enjoy it's cozy atmosphere and aesthetically pleasing decorations. A warm brown wood scuffed and scratched from the years covered the floor. It's tiles so charming , that the marks did not detract from the overall setting. Hushes tones and a perpetual autumn color pallet decorated the walls and the tables even the marble on the counter-top was an attractive shade of brown and it was so refreshing Kai's mood instantly rose. 

Nervous and a bit afraid but nevertheless thankful both occupants of the establishment were too busy to notice him (Kai silently thanked the lack of a welcoming bell) he slid his way into a booth in the very corner--obscured by a large plant--and far away from the windows or doors. Kai made sure to map out all the exits in case of an emergency another one of those pesty little habits that came with years of having to take pro-caution. 

He placed his bag in the corner of the booth and took a seat after he pulled off his coat and gloves. Atop the table was a holiday themed decoration. Kai had almost forgotten Christmas was vast in it's approach. He summoned his courage and allowed himself to approach the front counter.

The man was petite yet with broad shoulders that seemed to provide him with an air of confidence a boy his size would normally not have. He lazily flipped through a page as he bobbed his head to the beat of the song playing on his ipod. Kai allowed himself to take a closer look as he read his name tag. 

Kyungsoo was of the wealthy upper class, in fact, the particular cafe (appropriately titled 'Grind Me') had been a graduation present from his parents. He was a full time university student majoring in Business Management but with a more appreciated minor in Marine Biology. It was for that midterm he was so fervently studying for, his text book old and weary from the mistreatment and excessive notes. The cafe was his pride and joy. His precious baby that he showed off to anyone and everyone. Rather popular it's difficulty to find left him often with either a full house or a sparse crowd. He didn't mind either way as he enjoyed what he did and he did it with a smile. He had only two other employees, a foreign exchange student named Kris-- a clumsy, confused and outrageous man who stumbled his way through life with a lazy smile so set on his face. The other was another university student a grade beneath Kyungsoo. Sehun needed the money desperately as he mainly payed tuition and fees on scholarships and he worked hard despite his basic demeanor (which at times could be rude but Sehun was often unconcerned with niceties and would not placate you if he didn't' feel like it).

Kyungsoo rather enjoyed working alone despite how much he loved his friends. The other boys knew not to come in on the days Kyungsoo would dedicate his time to his precious pride. A well deserved day off for the two. 

He grabbed a highlighter sitting in a cup near the fancy cashregister and highlighted a sentence on a page that had already been highlighted numerous times, more so than what was probably needed but that was simply Kyungsoo. An insatiable thirst for more than what was provided he would seek out anything and everything if he was interested in it. When he was eight he decided he wanted to sing and as he explained this to his parents during the car ride home from a benefit gala his mother said she would make arrangements. He studied Music Theory, Basic Composition, the violin, the harp and three types of performance styles.

Opera and Classical were his least favorite as he hated to push his vocal range and always thought he sounded terrible despite the praise from his well known instructors.He had mastered a perfect legato long before he started opera training but couldn't shake the feeling that it was setting him back. Rock was fun but went terrible with his image. His polo shirts and pressed khaki's clashing terribly with the hard black leather that you couldn't pry off his instructor's pants even if you cut them in half. Never truly feeling comfortable his mother once again set him up in another set of classes. The last being jazz and blues, a genre that fit his vocal tone and range perfectly. Kyungsoo could sing anything and probably make it sound decent but he hardly ever strayed from what he liked best. 

At age sixteen he decided that performing wasn't for him and atop the normal horseback riding, swimming and soccer he decided he would study plant life after a trip to Costa Rica with his posh private school class mates. Plants were simply extraordinary to him. Soils, bacteria, fungus, biology had always been one his favorite classes and coupled with his awe for the water he decided he wanted to pursue that instead.

His aging mother so accustomed to the habits of her only child had simply rolled her eyes and asked if it was like the sculptures, the mountain climbing, the gymnastics or the poetry. In fact, Kyungsoo had studied music the longest and his parents were desperately hoping that their boy would finally settle down. 

He simply smiled and shook his head no and the women waved her hand at him and set to setting up classes for him but only if he would agree to doing something far more substantial especially knowing his tendency to stop and drop things at the newest object (hence why relationships never really lasted that long with him) and that's how he ended up running his own cafe at seventeen. 

Kyungsoo looked up and a happy smile spread across his lips in surprize, he ripped the headphones out and shoved them into a corner obscured by the large cash register and leaned upwards.

''What can I get you?'' he asked and Kai's eyes instantly widened. His voice was almost melodic in tone as if every-word was perfectly stressed and accented to provide him with comfort on the cloud ride to heaven. Deep and soothing he imagined what it would be like to have that affect on someone. Kai must have looked a mess to the perfectly styled Kyungsoo, whose nicely coiffed hair showed off his attractive facial features. 

Kai's feet turned in out of nervousness and Kyungsoo silently noticed and raised an eyebrow. He also noticed this boy wasn't one of his regulars as he made a point to know all about them. Mrs. Choi was a mother of five and had six grandchildren who were the highlight of her life. Young Suji was planning to be a singer and was a current trainee at an entertainment agency. Alex, the half American half Cuban boy was studying in Korea as an exchange student from New York. This boy was so new and Kyungsoo couldn't help but want to explore that. 

''Come on duck! We've got lots of cool coffee flavors and there are fresh baked cakes and pastries! Kris handles the pastries and Sehun usually mixes new drink flavors and whatever he doesn't like is usually what we end up selling!'' The boy continued as he looked down at his pad. 

''This week's special is the triple caramel and cheesy cheesecake!''

Kai didn't know who Kris and Sehun were, but he didn't bother to think about that as he finally registered what he'd been called. 

''Duck?'' he asked, voice a bit raspy from not using for so long. 

Kyungsoo's face showed no emotion as he pointed to the floor and Kai's feet were still turned in. A small tinge of red tainted his cheeks as he began to stammer. 

''I-I will have a regular black coffee with a piece of cheesecake!'' Kai said as he pulled his arms around himself as if to wrap around himself in protection. 

Kyungsoo nodded once as he set to warming up the coffee pot. 

By this time the young student had left without a sound, her table empty. Almost as if she had ever been there and Kai would question if she had ever really been there in the first place. 

He reached to the other side of the counter and slid a hand into the glass cage carefully picking up a cheesecake and placing it in a cute brown box with a G and M stylized together on the top. 

Grind Me. Kai didn't know if that was a play on words or if it meant something else as he was unaware of double entendre's or sexual innuendos. People usually told him what he wanted plainly and he did it. Simple. He slid his hands out of his pockets with the cash in them and he handed it to the boy who had placed his coffee next to the box. 

''I hope you like it! The cake tastes great and well . . . coffee is coffee! I'm Kyungsoo by the way, this is my place.'' 

Kai took the box and popped the cardboard cup holder open as to not burn his hands before simply responding. 

''It's nice.''

''Is it? Thanks?'' a small chuckled escaped Kyungsoo's lips. This boy was plain weird and unlike so many of the other customers that came in. His clientele mostly middle aged men and women or young students and couples. Not boys dressed in tight jeans so covered with rips and holes you could practically see his junk and who couldn't take a joke. 

Kai stood awkwardly staring at the other boy for a number of long drawn out seconds untill Kyungsoo simply moved to sit back down, hand already on the ipod before turning back to his work. Some people just irritated you and this boy's akward yet quiet air reminded Kyungsoo of a wounded cub backing itself into a corner. Kyungoo may have been nice, perhaps, but he did not handle children and individuals who chose to behave as such. 

Maybe Sehun was rubbing off on him afterall.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hands were grabbing him and he could no longer tell how many and where they were. He felt a big hand grasp a chunk of his hair and roughly pull him back. The motion was so sharp he cracked his neck and Kai was sure it would have snapped had he pulled any harder. The man standing above him smiled down at him- a nasty predatory-like  thing that seemed to bother Kai more than the what was happening around him. The teeth of the man yellow with age and stained from years of chain smoking and coffee drinking. Kai could not see any other feature of this man's face as he was roughly pushed downwards. The buttons on his pants ripped off with as much force as the kick he received to the ribs.The hands trailing down them were so cold . . . Why were they so cold? Who's hands were these?_

_Was he dead?_

_Kai did not have the chance to continue his train of thought because he was suddenly being  propped up and thrown around a man's shoulders -- whether it was the man with the smile or the man with the cold hands he did not know. Kai tried to move against the man, tried to struggle, tried to get away but he felt so sluggish. Everything was moving in slow motion._

_What was wrong with him?_

_As he tried to get his legs to kick his arms flailed and the lights began to swirl into one big ball of brightness as he was thrown against something that was soft. A bed?  A stack of hay? A room full of newspapers? He smiled a bit and then tried to scratch at the hands that were on him._

_Kai was sure he had mumbled something, was sure he had weakly said the word no (as if that made things better or would change the face that he could hardly speak or think) but to him it sounded more like a terrified gawk. A small little guttural scream that might have been louder than he thought. Might have been nastier than it really sounded. He heard faint laughter before he started to see the big ball of light morph into stars above him. Each one a different shape, a different shade, a different light that meant a different thing. The hands were pushing and pulling fast now and his boxers had been removed. He felt a blade against his side. colder than the hands that were caressing his right nipple and he was not sure what he did next._

_The stars began to morph into the faces of the people he knew. Kai stopped trying to struggle. Stopped trying to make the half-screams._

_He felt something hard beneath him and --_

Kai awoke with a jolt. His heartbeat erratic and fast, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Gasping for air and fists tightened around the bed-sheets. His sweat-slicked shirt stuck to his thin chest, Kai tried to breathe again. He let himself fall back onto the mattress as he stared up at the ceiling and attempted to calm himself. It had just been a dream of a memory he often forced himself to forget. He was terrified and his fears were no more assuaged by the sirens echoing in the distance than the quiet security of his own flat. Underneath warm blankets as he watched the snow  fall on the other side of the window, the air in the apartment stagnant and dry and he felt a wave of nausea over take him. Kai jumped up and ran to the small bathroom where he emptied the contents of his stomach into the porcelain bowl. His nerves shot, Kai had been a bundle of stress the entire day. He had done his best to watch out for the younger boys and girls and did not make the amount he normally made. 

 The increased security around his normal spots made it harder for him to pick up Johns and Kai had been feeling a little too withdrawn that day. No longer afraid of Jaejoong, Kai was sure he would come knocking sooner or later asking for his money a little too high or a little too drunk.  It was hard to ignore the heavy presence of drugs and alcohol when working in or around the street. After all, it was a mecca for those who had fallen under. Over the years he had seen one too many boys and girls start out bright eyed and bushy tailed only to end up in a dumpster a few months later. Eyes glassed over and pock marks littering their arms and legs, or eyes cut out and limbs splayed over a body that was broken. Kai never forgot the faces that suddenly disappeared overnight, never forgot the way their voices sounded; made sure to commit it to memory so that he would have something to give to the police ever in case they would follow up on a body. 

Kai made sure to not do anything that would mar his physical body. If the goods were damaged then they sold for far less. Easily accessible drugs like prescription pills were more his drugs of choice. Meth and Heroine ran rampant on the streets and so many people destroyed themselves with it. Perhaps he still had hope that one day he would find himself escaping her concrete roads and instead kept to the things that would not alter his appearance.  Her pathways and alley's more than metaphors for the situation many found themselves in. 

Outside. the snow fell in pretty swirls and Kai stared at himself in the mirror his daily dose of self loathing ever present on his mind.  Large chunks that always distracted him and kept his mind busy as he walked corner to corner fell against the roof of the complex and decided against going to bed that day. He was about to make something to eat with whatever was in his cabinets when he heard a thump against his door. He momentarily tensed before deciding whoever it was could not hurt him more than he had already been hurt as he swung the door open. Baekhyun sat against the side of the door, ice on his hair and cheeks and tried to smile up at Kai. 

He led the boy inside and sat him on his bed before joining him on the other side. He could forgot about everything for just one day. He could forgot about the debts he owed, the lies the told and the pain he harbored in his heart for just one day. 

He turned over and tried to get warm as he forced himself to sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last pre-written chapter I have for this fic. Please tell me your thoughts!


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